"You need time to invest in emotions" says Anup Vishwanathan

Come December 12, Indian audiences would witness a completely different flavour of nonfiction programming. The first of its kind show would be aired on Sony Entertainment Television seven days a week. It would, however, be aired at 10 pm Monday to Friday, and 8.30 in the evening on Saturday and Sunday.

It is not for the first time that Sony would air a differentiated nonfiction show – it has done so in the past as well with shows like Kaun Banega Crorepati, Entertainment Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega, Comedy Circus, Boogie Woogie, Bournvita Quiz Contest and also Movers and Shakers. Power Couple, however, has become one of the most awaited nonfiction shows on Hindi GEC in recent past.

Produced by Colosceum India and hosted by Bollywood’s one of the most ‘in-love’ and stylish couple, Malaika Arora Khan and Arbaaz Khan, Power Couple is a celebration of the essence of true love. It gauges how far the couples will go to prove their undying affection to each other.

What makes the show more interesting is the selection of participants. 10 power couples from the world of entertainment would be seen on an away-from-home show for the first time.  Celebrity couples on the show are Pratyusha Banerjee-Rahul Raj Singh, Naved Jaffrey-Sayeeda, Jesse Randhawan-Sandeep Soparkar, Apoorva Agnihotri-Shilpa Saklani, Aamir Ali-Sanjeeda Sheikh, Delnaz Irani-Percy Karkaria, Salil Ankola-Ria Banerjee, Shawar Ali-Marsela, Ashmit Patel-Mehak Chahal, and Rahul Dev-Mugdha Godse. Kritika and Vishal, a cozy twosome from Gurgaon, winners of a contest run by Sony to get a non celebrity couple on the show, complete the list of participants. 

The show steers clear of controversy and conflict. Anup Vishwanathan, SVP and Head Marketing, Sony Entertainment Television says, “You won’t find negativity and high drama in this show. It’s about fun and laughter, support, love, positivity and compatibility.”

An exquisite villa, created in beautiful surroundings of Goa would be the abode of participating couples throughout the season. They would stay there cutoff from the outside world. Here, they will undergo various tests of love to prove how well they know each other, their mettle and chemistry. Before each task, one of the partners will invest ‘trust points’ in their better half’s chances of winning. If the partner succeeds in the task, the couple wins the points, but if they lose, the points are deducted.

Anup emphasises that the choice of beautiful locale is completely in harmony with what the show is all about. He says, “Goa just sets the mood. Sony has always spoken the language of possibility. The whole show is not designed to create differences between these lovely couples, but to bring them closer.  We just want them to come in and enjoy as there is no script. India is ready for possibilities at least through TV.”

The show will be around 90 minutes long over the weekends as ‘you need time to invest in emotions’, explains Anup. On weekdays, however, it would be a 30 minute power packed slot.

Power Couple is an adaption of Israeli show by the same name which has won accolades from around the globe. While keeping the intrinsic values of the overseas format intact, the channel has brought in changes keeping in mind Indian milieu and psyche. Anup smiles, “The nature of romance is very Indian. We are GEC and we have to appeal to a large heterogeneous set of audiences. We feel this show will have a greater connect to married couples or maybe couples who have been in relationships for a long time. However, we are confident that it would cut across all target groups.”

The anchors or hosts of the show, one of BollyTown’s most gorgeous couple, Arbaaz and Malaika add their unique flavour to it. Anup states, “They are power couple in themselves and have seen ups and downs together and will bring in their perspective of love and compatibility, which is amazing. That is the reason we got them on board. Also we made sure that each couple can bring in different nature and type of chemistry in their relationships.”

Brands, of course, have loved the concept. Brands already on board include Ponds, PriyaGold snakker Ching’s Secret, Dettol and a few others.

Sony has launched Pyar Ko Ho Jaane Do and Parvarrish Season 2 in the recent past. Other flagship shows on channel include CID, Crime Patrol, Sankat Mochan Mahabali and Maharana Pratap. Power Couple would add to these offerings to further enrich its bouquet of programming. One can almost sense the interesting times ahead for the channel.